Devotionals

Water baptism does not guarantee that the person baptized has true faith in the Messiah, but it is so closely tied to the baptism of the Spirit we receive at conversion that people should not be rebaptized even if they ...Read More

Although we all have different roles in the body of Christ, our call is the same — to live together in loving unity with other believers as we worship the Lord in the beauty of His holiness and proclaim the ...Read More

Adherents of other religions confess belief in one God, but orthodox Christianity alone affirms the existence of one God who exists eternally as three persons who all share the same essence. The love shared between the three persons of the ...Read More

John Calvin says that “while we remain in Adam, we are entirely devoid of life; and that regeneration is a new life of the soul, by which it rises from the dead.” We do not come into the world sick ...Read More

The “spirit of wisdom and of revelation” is not some esoteric gift or special blessing received after conversion. Instead, it refers to the work of the Spirit to help all the people of God understand the things of God. If ...Read More

Matthew Henry comments, “This deposit makes it as sure to the heirs as though they already possessed it; and it is purchased for them by the blood of Christ.” The blood of Jesus cannot fail to purchase those for whom ...Read More

The world sees Christians as ignorant, backward, and even evil because God has concealed our identity to all except those who trust His only begotten Son. Because of the sin that still clings to us, however, sometimes we cannot see ...Read More

To say that all we need is Christ for growth in grace is not somehow to make the Word of God, the sacraments, or the church superfluous. Jesus, by His Spirit, dwells in us, but remaining sin means that we ...Read More

God calls all of us to take part in the teaching ministry of the church, though not all of us have the same role. Some will be ordained teachers. Others will help their children memorize Scripture. Still others may support ...Read More

John Calvin comments on this passage, reminding us that we should not let the “injurious treatment” of others provoke us to revenge, for those who bother us are merely darts from Satan’s hand. “While we are employed in destroying those ...Read More